Midan City Resort Complex, the South Korean integrated resort and casino project previously overseen by US gaming giant Caesars Entertainment, is unlikely to open before 2025 according to a report by local news outlet Korea News.
Three months after the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism denied the project’s new owners, Chinese construction firm Guangzhou R&F Properties Co, a three-year extension to its construction deadline – offering a 12-month extension until late 2022 instead – construction is yet to resume after stalling in early 2020 due to COVID-19.
However, there is also no sign that construction will begin anytime soon with Guangzhou R&F said to be on the lookout for more financing as well as a new operator partner in the wake of Caesars’ withdrawal. The two companies had been partners in the project, previously called Caesars Korea Resort Complex, before Caesars withdrew in January and sold its 50% stake back to Guangzhou R&F.
According to the Korea News report, only 25% of the casino complex has been completed, leaving little time to meet its current December 2022 deadline. It also notes that 60% of the land comprising the broader Midan City complex remains unsold, stalling the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority’s development plans for the region.
The report notes, however, that there is no limit to the number of extension requests R&F Properties is permitted to submit, meaning it will likely request a 12-month extension every year until completion – speculated to be in late 2024 or early 2025.
R&F itself has been undergoing some key structural changes in recent months, including liquidation of its Korean subsidiary, Tianli Korea Construction, in order to streamline operations. Tianli had been the company on site developing Midan City Resort Complex.
If and when complete, Midan City will include a casino, 751 hotel rooms, a theater and convention space.
A spokesperson for R&F Properties told Korea News, “The resumption of the construction of the casino complex has not been carried out yet, and there is no set schedule for the future.”
